


a better place

by Mrs_Angie_Carter



Category: Arrow (TV 2012), Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-20
Updated: 2017-11-17
Packaged: 2018-12-04 10:26:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11553261
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mrs_Angie_Carter/pseuds/Mrs_Angie_Carter
Summary: Earth 27: After Lex's crusade against Superman, Lena decides to move the company to a new city for a fresh start. Instead of National City though she settles on a place she might really be able to make a difference, Star City. Where she meets one (very alive) Laurel Lance. This is their relationship through the eyes and events of the people around them. (Set mostly with the Arrow crew considering the SG crew is all in National City)Otherwise known as the fic literally no one asked for





	1. Felicity

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic so please be gentle. I am not really a writer but this idea would not leave me be. Also literally no one asked for this but I'm emo about Laurel getting the recognition she deserves and being treated properly, instead of like a punching bag in canon. So I started writing this about 3-4 months ago. 
> 
> Let me know what you think! Also if you have any suggestions for other Lena/Laurel related thingys bc it's apparently my only ship I love now. Too late y'all. It's mine.
> 
> I should probably add that this will not be terribly kind to Oliver seeing as I hate the smug hypocritical douchebag. So yeah.
> 
> The timeline is that post Sara's resurrection in early S4 Lena and Laurel meet, Dhark isn't a huge issue until just before Laurel is almost killed.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which she swears she’s not jealous. Not at all.

# Chapter 1: Felicity

 

 

Felicity Smoak is a genius. MIT class of ‘09. CEO of Palmer Tech. Brains behind Team Arrow. That is who Felicity Smoak is. She is used to always being the smartest person in basically all of Star City and not to brag but frequently called (at least by the STAR Labs team) ‘best hacker in the world’. The problem with all of this is when Laurel introduces Lena. Lena _Luthor_ . Not to sound skeptical but typically people with murdery families tend to be well..murdery themselves. Helena Bertinelli anyone?? And so what Lena Luthor is the CEO of a rival tech company, impossibly beautiful, incredibly charming, and slowly but surely making her way into Felicity’s everyday life. It’s like every conversation she has with Laurel or even _Thea_ now, perfect Lena Luthor is brought up.

 

‘ _Did you know Lena speaks 11 languages, did you know Lena loves that new ethiopian place that just opened in the glades, did you know Lena spends her spare time donating to homeless shelters and orphans. Freaking. Orphans. Did you know??’_

 

Or her new personal favorite

 

_‘Lena took me stargazing last night, Lena took me on a yacht out of Central City to see WHALEs, Lena took me to that carnival I’ve always wanted to go to, Lena Lena Lena Lena Lena.’_

 

Ok. Calm down, Jan. Honestly, Felicity is desperate. Lena Luthor can’t be that great. How she finds the time to do half of these things is a total mystery to Felicity. Because at least Felicity is a part time vigilante hacker. Or well. She was. Until she and Oliver had that fight, though she knows it’s probably not long until she gives into him/it/helping people/whATEVER. So it’s pretty safe to say that she isn’t Lena’s number one fan right off the bat.

 

It doesn’t help that she’s brilliant. Which, you know, is _Felicity’s thing._ She’s the brilliant one. And honestly ok this _is_ kind of like Sara joining the team all over again except it's not….why does she feel so threatened? Lena Luthor is not a badass assassin with _great_ abs and a pension for knocking people unconscious. No, in comparison to fresh out of the League Sara, Lena is like a tiny puppy. Who happens to be one of the world’s great minds. It doesn’t help that they beat Palmer Tech to a nanotech microchipping technology that _she swears they cheated on._ She was supposed to get it first dammit.

 

It _really_ doesn’t help that she’s gorgeous either. With her dark hair and those _perfect_ brows, I mean who other than supermodels have brows _that_ good. It’s highly suspicious. She doesn’t have awkward pauses, flailing arm movements, and she certainly doesn’t go rambling on for too long in meetings. She’s a brilliant CEO. Felicity would know, they had to do that stupid _Tech Giants of Star City Conference_ together. She’s pretty sure if Lena’s last name was anything _but_ Luthor, Lena would be the darling daughter Star City has been waiting for.

 

Felicity knows really that all of this would be tolerable ,acceptable, commendable even, if Lena and Laurel were _bad_ for eachother. She would be fine with all of these amazing things about Lena freaking Luthor if she couldn’t keep her personal life together. But no. Of course that’s just freaking _dandy_ too. She’s dating one of Felicity’s _best friends_ so she tries to be happy for them while her own personal life implodes.

 

She doesn’t tell anyone she wished a few months ago that Lena and Laurel would go through some catastrophic cataclysmic event like she and Oliver did. It’s probably for the best. Especially when Lena ends up in jail for a crime she had no part in and Laurel is in the hospital after almost dying from an arrow to the stomach. When Lena shows up at the hospital after detect- _Captain_ Lance (and the Sara and Nyssa in secret) exhausts himself proving Lena was innocent, Felicity wants to hate her for looking like she was lounging at a spa while she was in jail, but the look of devastation on her face when she sees the machines, and wires, and the pale sickly color of Laurel’s face makes her regret every bad thought she’s ever had about Lena Luthor.

She’s not sure she’ll ever get the look of Lena’s face out of her mind. But Laurel smiles so big and so wide and this is the point where Lena is supposed to be _mad_ at Laurel for _lying_ but no. Of freaking course not.

 

Laurel is no Oliver. Laurel is smarter than that, big surprise. She listens and learns and wow Felicity kind of wishes that she were just a tad less straight so that she could just date her... or Sara. The point is, Lena knows. Lena Luthor _has known_ . You know. About the whole _‘oh we’re vigilantes who don’t have powers and run around at night fighting crime in this stupid freaking city trying to get ourselves murdered.’_  Laurel apparently told her before they started dating. And like. _Who does that?_ Certainly not Oliver. But Laurel learns.

 

She’s learned that secrets kill and how dangerous their power is over people after the whole ‘ _Sara is totally fine dad’_ incident. And she just couldn’t keep it from Lena, who had become her _best friend (_ and yeah ok Felicity might be bitter about that a little bit too, she’s supposed to be bffs with Laurel even though she’s with Oliver Queen and _wow ok when did her life get so twisted_ ).

 

Point is Lena hasn’t been lied to and lead on and frustrated because Laurel has done this crazy ridiculous thing where she just _told Lena the truth._ What a concept to this group. It would hurt a little less if they weren’t so cute together too. Like sickeningly cute even in _a freaking hospital_ . The kind of cute Felicity and Oliver used to be before it was decided that they would make the stupidest decision ever.. to come _back._ Laurel looks at Lena like she’s her whole world (well half of it technically speaking, there’s the other Lance sister to contend with), like there are stars in her eyes, and a galaxy in her smile. It’s disgusting.

 

Lena isn’t any better though, she’s probably worse. Lena looks at Laurel like she’s her _hero._ Lena freaking Luthor apparently even called Laurel her hero before they started dating and _before she knew Laurel is the Black Canary._

What the FRICK. It would be cute if Felicity wasn’t so painfully aware sometimes of the way Oliver and co.™ treat the oldest Lance sister at every turn. And that deep down no one has probably ever called Laurel their hero until maybe Sara, if she’s ever gotten around to saying it.

Felicity knows no one has ever believed in Laurel completely, that there’s always been people waiting for her to fail so they can taunt her. But Lena is unlike anyone Felicity or Laurel has ever met. Because when she looks at Laurel she sees the hero that she has _always been_ , even before the Queen’s Gambit sank, when Laurel was going to law school to become a lawyer for people’s rights and the downtrodden people in the glades of Star City.   

 

Maybe that’s the real kicker of it all. Lena sees all of Laurel. Laurel sees all of Lena. They _trust_ each other. With everything. Apparently they don’t do secrets. _Which is such a foreign concept in this team they have._ So yeah, Felicity is used to being the smartest person in the room. But apparently Lena Luthor is smarter because she’s not willing to settle for someone who keeps secrets like a dragon hoarding it’s gold. She’s not bitter at all.

 

Except she kind of is.

 

This is all just a little too much to handle. She can come see her friend in a day or two once she’s gotten to spend some time with her family. And maybe Felicity and Oliver can have a chat about whatever the heck they’re doing, and be honest with each other for once. So she does the best she can and shoos everyone out of the room so that these two can talk. She and Sara are friends now after all.

 

Maybe she and Lena can be friends too.

  
  


\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  



	2. Diggle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which John concedes that love looks good on Laurel.

John Diggle is definitely the backbone of Team Arrow. Not that anyone would say that out loud but it doesn’t make it less true.  
  
He knows he brings a certain level headed-ness to the team, when his brother isn’t involved that is. John likes to think that of all the team he’s the serious one that they can all turn to. But if John is the backbone then Laurel is the lungs. That quiet organ that makes it possible to live, never getting as much credit as heart or the brain, but vital nonetheless.  
  
Laurel whom he has witnessed turn her life into something else entirely. Sacrificing so much in memory of the sister that she lost, for the good of the city, for her friends and family. Laurel is an essential part of Team Arrow and John is starting to get a little suspicious because she’s been turning up to training and patrols with the biggest grin on her face. One that he hasn’t seen since before Tommy died or when Sara got her soul back. So when he asks what is up with her he isn’t expecting her to say that she’s seeing someone.    
  
  
  
John isn’t entirely sure what to think at first. If Oliver is the brother he lost a long time ago, then Laurel is the sister he never had right along with Felicity or Thea. It’s hard sometimes. He feels guilty mostly for not taking care of her enough. For not paying attention to her enough. For prioritizing Oliver and the team over her. But he knew Ollie first. OTA right? Him, Felicity, and Oliver. Even though he spent the first year they were together trying to get Oliver to fess up and own up to his feelings about the lawyer.  
  
Even though he had to help save her more than a few times, those times she wasn’t saving herself that is, in some way he feels slightly responsible for the insecurities he can see lingering on Laurel every now and then. He knows that no amount of training or skill will ever be enough to make Oliver think Laurel is good enough to be on the team. Maybe he should have been more vocal about supporting her early on.  
  
He knows what it’s like to lose a sibling, he could have supported Laurel more, Sara was (is? Which in itself is a whole other mess) his teammate too. So he doesn’t know what to think when Laurel shows up to this double date night (Lyla and Laurel apparently set it up after Laurel confessed to seeing someone) with Lena Luthor of all people.  
  
  
  
In hindsight it shouldn’t be a surprise.  
  
Laurel has talked about pretty much nothing other than the CEO of L Corp for the past two months. He just thought they were BFFs (he’ll never hear the end of it from Sara “Yeah Dig, Laurel and her gal pal have just moved in together”, great).  
  
He’s also not sure what to expect. Lena is downright shy when Laurel introduces her, complete with a blush. Laurel and Lyla jump headfirst into a conversation and it gives him time to really size up the Luthor girl.  
  
It isn’t until she’s asked about Laurel that Lena opens up though. It takes John by surprise. He expected her to boast about all the good L Corp is doing or how she’s saving the city (whether that’s true or not he’s not sure) or how she loves and/or hates the vigilantes of the city.  Instead she gushes about Laurel. She’s so proud of all of Laurel’s cases as an ADA that John can’t form words.  
  
He’s not sure when the last time any of them even remembered Laurel was a lawyer anyways. So he nods and smiles and Lena Luthor might be alright.  
  
  
  
He gets to know them as a couple slowly. Gets to see the humor and light that they bring to a room when they smile at each other and tease each other endlessly.  
  
When Laurel orders herself two desserts he sees Lena just smile and shake her head while asking for another fork instead of giving Laurel the look like ‘ _really, wasn’t one enough?_ ’. Lena steals small bites from Laurel’s dessert and the lawyer gladly concedes, which is telling considering she normally hisses and slaps people’s hands away from her food.  
  
John gets to witness this soft side to the somewhat cold CEO that Lena portrays to the public.  
  
L Corp isn’t ever much of a discussion seeing as he knows Felicity will be mad at him for _‘consorting with the enemy_ ’ even if he knows deep down she doesn’t have anything against the other CEO, she’s just always been the smartest in town and it’s unsettling for her. Not that Lena minds, she would much rather talk about Laurel and listen to what he and Lyla have to say.  
  
The less they talk about her Luthor heritage the better. When Lena is genuinely interested in their lives he is somewhat stunned, he never expected _Lena Luthor_ to be sharing his table and time and actually genuinely listening to what he has to say. She has this strange way of making people feel heard and at the end of the night he and Lyla leave feeling lighter than expected (whether that’s due to the wine or the company he isn’t sure).  
  
  
  
Lyla enjoys the double date nights as well. And of course John loves seeing his wife so happy, and his teammate so happy too. The more they get to know the other couple the more he enjoys this night every few weeks.  
  
He doesn’t know how Oliver and the team haven’t figured out where and why he and Laurel need off for these things but they don’t ask. He genuinely likes Lena too, she’s shy but very smart and charming when she gets going.  
  
But he has a strong suspicion that Lena knows about Team Arrow. It’s commendable that Laurel would be so honest but he’s also not 100% ok with it. It’s not just her secret after all and he has a daughter ( _fuck off Barry_ ) and wife to think about. He’s not sure how well that’s going to end for everyone, but he’ll concede because he knows if Laurel told her it wasn’t to hurt them it was to be honest, which is refreshing in their line of work.  
  
He’s too used to double dating with Oliver and Felicity and their constant bickering. Too used to them constantly fighting in the cave too. So everything about Lena and Laurel is refreshing really.  
  
  
  
When Lena treats them all to the fanciest dinner John has ever been to at the next double date night he knows he made the right decision. This celebration is all because Laurel took down that new extremely dangerous gang that was roughing up kids as an ADA (vigilantes for once were not needed, it makes her win that much sweeter). Got them all ten years and it’s been all over the news.  
  
It goes without saying that John is proud of her. He hopes she knows that at least. It’s when he sees Lena looking at Laurel though that he realizes just how serious this all is. Of course he’s seen them together but this look that Lena has in her eyes is something else.  
  
He doesn’t know how he ever missed it, he’s supposed to be observant. But here she is, a girl with the literal world at her feet is looking at one of his best friends in awe. Which he is definitely not used to. No one he has ever met has looked at the oldest Lance sister like that, not even fresh off the island Oliver or absolutely lovesick Tommy.  
  
It’s when a cake is brought out in the shape of a Canary that he loses it.  
  
Laurel is a blushing mess, Lyla is taking all kinds of pictures and trying to keep a straight face, John is too busy dying laughing, and Lena looks like _the cat that got the canary._ He decides right then and there that Lena Luthor has the John Diggle seal of approval. He’s not sure how the rest of the team will take it though.  
  
  
  
When Oliver all but drags Sara back from time traveling for some absurd witch hunt against Lena he gets his answer.  
  
Laurel had just told everyone that she and Lena are dating and it was fine for a week. Now Oliver is convinced the CEO is up to no good. Trying to weasel her way into Team Arrow.  
  
Surely Laurel being a vigilante is the only reason they’re dating. Surely there is absolutely no other way that someone could care for Laurel unless it was using her as a means to an end. Surely she is being duped and mislead by big mean smart Lena Luthor. John wants to punch him in the face. He does, but much later.  
  
  
  
When Oliver goes a little too far while he and Laurel are training one day John intervenes. Oliver is his brother dammit. But Laurel is a damn good friend too. They’re all supposed to be a family. So John makes the hard decision and rips into Oliver.  
  
They should be focusing on Dhark. Let’s not forget the big bad guy here in this city who has tried to kill them multiple times. John lets out his frustrations with the man who is supposed to be their leader. Not that it does much. If anything it convinces the archer that Lena had gone and dug her claws into John and Lyla too. A three for one special. Felicity is just as distrusting and Thea hates fighting with Oliver nowadays so they don’t help the issue much. The team is broken, torn.  
  
  
  
Lena is arrested not much later. Guilty of building tech that would level the city and with plans to do so. John hopes that this is all a dream.  
  
That the woman he spent months getting to know and like and who loves Laurel could not possibly be the same one who did all of this. Who created all of this chaos. Who built this giant machine. But the judge says she is. The evidence says she is. Laurel is a wreck.  
  
He’s a little afraid she might fall into a bottle and dammit can’t the woman catch one break in her life. He wants her to just leave and settle on a beach somewhere where everything in Star City will never find her because Laurel Lance has fought harder than all of them and for so long and she never wins. Life always finds a way to shut her down. So he and Lyla do their best to take care of her. Take baby Sara along to try and cheer her up, keep her distracted.  
  
  
  
It doesn’t work. Laurel believes in Lena’s innocence so much. He makes sure he’s always on patrol with her instead of Oliver. She doesn’t need to be lectured yet again. He knows she’s determined to fix this, but honestly, he has no idea how she even can.  
  
  
  
It’s Lance who does though. Captain Lance has apparently been looking into the case. Digging for more. Trying to prove the evidence false.  
  
  
  
When the whole team goes to take down Damien Dhark they find out what Lance already knows. Dhark is the one responsible for everything. He planted every bit of evidence. Has been doing so since L Corp opened in Star City. He’s the one who wants the city destroyed not Lena.  
  
  
  
He’s so happy for a moment, for his friend, he sees the small smile on Laurel’s face when her faith is proven right. They still have work to do but now there’s a bigger force pushing them all to see this through. Take down Dhark. Free Lena. Let Laurel be happy. That happiness and rush of motivation doesn’t last long though. Dhark has them all immobilized. Laurel has an arrow protruding from her stomach with blood running down her face.  
  
  
  
Life can’t ever let a Lance sister be happy.  
  
  
  
Until it does. Lance takes the evidence he’s learned (with help from the former assassin duo of Nyssa and Sara) about his daughter’s girlfriend straight to the top. Lena is acquitted and cleared of all charges. There’s still the issue that Laurel is laying on a hospital bed looking awfully pale. But he figures that if Laurel can survive all the hell she’s been through in life, she can get through this too. He doesn’t make the mistake of doubting Laurel Lance again. He has faith this time. Faith that she is gonna be ok. The team wouldn’t be complete without their Black Canary. He has to believe.  
  
  
  
All his believing works. When Lena comes ripping through the hospital demanding that Laurel get only the best treatment all he can do is laugh. He knows now that Laurel is going to be more than fine for once.  
  
  
  
He apologizes to Lena.  And to Laurel. For not trusting her judgement. For doubting the both of them. Lena is gracious and says all is well. Laurel gives him a fake glare and a punch on the shoulder. When he leaves to go home to his beautiful wife and daughter he steals a glance back at them. Lena is stroking Laurel’s hair who has the biggest smile he’s ever seen her wear. She’s in a hospital bed after a wrestling match with death itself and yet she’s never looked so damn beautiful. Happy.  
  
  
  
In the years he’s know her John isn’t sure he’s ever actually seen Laurel happy. At the most content. This is something new altogether.  
  
  
  
Love looks much better on his dear friend than death.


	3. Quentin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Lance is pretty sure he gains another daughter

Something is up. Quentin knows it in his gut as he sits across from Laurel for a coffee break one day. His oldest daughter is too...smiley. She looks radiant and glowy despite the bruise she’s barely concealing on her chin. So naturally he’s suspicious, it’s his cop instincts after all. He feels that familiar ache in his chest when Laurel smiles just a little too wide and so he starts to look into whatever she’s been doing with her non work/non vigilante time, of which there is too little for her to be so damn happy about. Not that he’s complaining about his eldest being happy, it’s just so  _ strange _ .

  
  


What he finds is even stranger. Between training and work and Canary duties the only thing Laurel has done is hang out with Lena Luthor of all people. He’s not sure why the Luthor girl is Laurels new friend but his oldest daughter does have a tendency for caring for people in need. And if the rumors in this town are anything to go off of, he knows that the CEO doesn’t exactly have many friends, if any. So he’s proud of Laurel for taking it upon herself to make the city’s new genius tech giant feel more comfortable. Unfortunately there’s a case file on his desk about suspicious illegal technology inside of L Corp. He puts a tail on Lena Luthor. 

 

He knew Laurel was her friend but when his detectives give him their report on the month they spent trailing the Luthor girl he wasn’t expecting this. Right in front of him is a picture of his oldest daughter, his rock, his safe place, full on making out with Lena Luthor outside of the new Ethiopian restaurant that just opened up in the Glades. It’s disconcerting. Not because Lena is a woman of course, he already went through dealing with that with Sara so he’s fine. Though he would have like to have known that both of his daughters are gay (when he mentions that when Sara is in the vicinity she punches him in the shoulder as both of his daughters shout “ _ We’re bisexual!” _ , he learns not to make that mistake again). So that’s not what bothers him. It’s that L Corp and its CEO are currently under investigation and just  _ once _ he’d like his daughters to find someone  _ nice _ to date, instead of a douchebag playboy who doesn’t care about anyone or a highly trained heir to a secret guild of freaking assassins. It’s sad when Tommy Merlyn was the  _ one _ person who has ever treated one of his daughters right, of course he died (he’s starting to think God has something out for the Lance family), so this news that Laurel has been keeping from him is worrisome. 

 

The conflict of interest is already there but it gets even more complicated when Laurel invites him over for dinner. He’s grateful that Sin is there, it gives him someone to pester with fatherly questions like  _ how are classes, is your dorm room too small, is your roommate mean, has anyone on campus offered you drugs, if anyone hurts you you call me straight away _ , which let him loosen up and forget about for one second that his daughter’s new girlfriend has a file sitting on his desk. He remembers though when he’s done badgering Sin for a moment and he sees Lena fidgeting nervously on the couch. He decides he has to bite the bullet and at least talk to the girl but from then on it's a downhill spiral. Not because Lena is terrible no, the opposite actually. Lena Luthor is downright charming, a little shy, and very smart. He wants to not like her, his gut is still suspicious, but the father in him wants to hug her every time she looks at his baby like Laurel is her  _ world ( _ Laurel does it for him) _.  _ On their third dinner together when she starts talking about her adoptive family his heart breaks a little bit for her. He wishes that this woman who is brilliant and compassionate and shy was given a chance to be anything but a cold hearted Luthor that her parents clearly tried to shape her to be. No leads have come in on the investigation so he sighs in relief. 

 

The more time Lance gets to spend with the couple the more he likes them, likes Lena, likes the way his daughter seems lighter and happier than she did even before the Queen’s Gambit went down. There are some things he could live without of course, she’s brilliant and often speaks in what feels like another language, it makes him feel a lot dumber than when he talks with Felicity the rambler, and she always insists on paying when they go out instead of cooking, and the way she almost idolizes the vigilantes (he doesn’t know that she  _ knows _ ). Those are little things though in comparison to love interests past. So for once he’s incredibly grateful that this is who has Laurel’s heart. He likes this woman. He likes how she fits quietly into their little family. Unfortunately right as he starts to really accept Lena into their lives some damning evidence comes in on L Corp. He has no choice but to send his detectives to pick her up. He’s pretty sure Laurel will never forgive him for this.  

 

Laurel believes in Lena’s innocence completely, it drives a wedge between them. He can’t deny the evidence though, even if he doesn’t want to believe it, can’t believe that the woman he’s gotten to know would do this. He doesn’t see Laurel for weeks, partly because Damien Dhark has decided to wreak havoc on the city some more, but mostly because she doesn’t want to see him. He’s close to grabbing a bottle of whiskey. He knows that Laurel trusts Lena explicitly but he just can’t, the girl is a  _ Luthor _ after all, he can’t help but feel he should have known from the start. As the weeks drag on and the Dhark problem gets worse this need only intensifies when he realizes what kind of danger Laurel is in. She’s fighting on pure emotion and he’s sure that if she continues to fight like this out of this burning hatred and anger that he’ll be burying another daughter far too soon. The last time he sees her it’s like she doesn’t even know what she’s fighting for, his little girl looks lost and he thinks maybe he could do something to change it. He looks into Lena’s case himself. He almost wishes he hadn’t. 

 

The second he starts looking into the L Corp case himself (he doesn’t want Sara doing something stupid and helping) the threats from Dhark start coming in. He’s playing with fire and he’s pretty sure someone is going to end up burned. Dhark knows his weak spots, of course he does, it’s what the villain is best at after all. But he persists, it’s obvious now that this has been a setup all along. Dhark needed Lena gone to gain access to some technology deep inside of L Corp so he can  _ cleanse _ the city (what is it with people and cleansing this city  _ Jesus _ ). He can feel he is getting close to proving that Lena is innocent he just needs a little more time. So he ignores the threats and believes he has to  _ trust _ in his daughter, to trust that Laurel can handle herself, that she doesn’t need his protection because she’s not a little girl anymore, she’s the  _ Black Canary  _ after all. 

 

When he can finally prove Lena is being set up and all of Team Arrow is there, so is Damien Dhark.

 

Laurel ends up with an arrow driven into her stomach. 

 

Quentin Lance has never felt so empty in his life. He thought when Sara died that he had. He was wrong. Seeing Laurel in the hospital bed clinging to life breaks him in a way he never thought possible.

 

It takes him only a week after Dhark nearly kills Laurel to prove (with Sara and Nyssa helping) that Lena is innocent and it was all a setup, the entire time praying to any and every god he can think of to keep Laurel alive, for her to hold on just a little bit longer. 

 

She does. 

 

He’s pretty sure he’ll never be able to get rid of the image of Lena’s face when she sees Laurel in the hospital. Lena Luthor is not what he ever expected her to be and when she breaks down sobbing onto Laurel’s stomach he knows he couldn’t have asked for a better partner for his eldest daughter. Laurel is running her hands through Lena’s messy hair and they’re whispering exchanging declarations of love and dedication and heartache and even though she’s in the hospital after almost dying he’s never seen Laurel’s smile so wide. It surprises everyone to find out that Lena knows that Laurel is the Black Canary, so used to everyone keeping secrets, Quentin and everyone but Thea and Diggle are stunned into an awkward silence.

 

Quentin knows he has to break the weirdly silent atmosphere or it might go on forever. So, he apologizes for not trusting Lena, not trusting  _ them _ . Laurel just sighs and honestly it's almost disgusting the look of love she gets in her eyes and tells them that Lena has known since about three months into knowing one another. He is in awe. Everyone is. The vigilantes in this room are notorious for their secret keeping and for Laurel to have just told someone about it and not brooded for weeks instead is upsetting. Laurel laughs a little at everyone’s shocked expressions and said that it was the easiest thing she’s ever done, trusting Lena. The Canary explains to the group that she had to trust Lena, how could she not after that fateful night when Lena had whispered reverently to her “ _ Laurel Lance,  _ **_you_ ** _ are my hero.”  _ Lance thinks he might cry. So he shoves everyone out of the room and gives them some time alone. While he’s getting his coffee and waiting for his presence to be welcome again he realizes that Lena is a part of them now. She might as well be a Lance (he’s pretty sure it won’t take long for her to be one officially as well). 

 

With all of her assets unfrozen and back to her, Lena is a whirlwind. Laurel is moved to the finest part of the hospital with the finest doctors flown in and the best care possible. The woman has just spent months in  _ jail _ but here she is taking care of Laurel, running her  _ multi billion dollar _ company, and going to a therapist for all she’s been through. If he wasn’t impressed with her love for his daughter before, he is now. It’s over a cup of hospital coffee and a game of cards one night next to Laurel’s hospital bed with Nyssa, Sara, Thea, and Sin (all of his girls together  _ for once) _ that he welcomes Lena into his heart. 

 

He figures it was inevitable really. According to Sara and Nyssa he’s  Abu el Banat _. _

  
_Father of daughters._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So ok I know I'm totally 100% stealing they 'you are my hero' thing from SuperCorp but hear me out: Lena is just really fucking gay y'all. 
> 
> I can easily see her swooning over someone like Laurel who like Kara believes in the best of people. So like. Sorry not sorry. Laurel deserves to have someone believe in her. 
> 
>  
> 
> Please let me know what you think of this chapter or this fic or of lenaxlaurel. I have loads of headcanons to share.
> 
> I'm being very kind to Quentin in this particular fic even though this is definitely not how I feel about him personally. I didn't want to just rip the guy apart in this fic because I wanted it to be sweet and fluffy and everything that Laurel deserves. And Laurel deserves a better father, so in this fic he is a bit better.


	4. Sara

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Sara may not ever think she herself is worthy, but at least someone is.

It starts for Sara while she’s on the Waverider. She’s not 100% sure how Ollie managed to get a hold of them as they travel through time but it's chill. It’s Oliver after all. What she isn’t prepared for is the conspiracy theories he spews during their call. Something about some evil woman plotting to end all of Star City a la Slade with corporate take over and espionage and Sara is confused. Very confused. When Ollie says this new big bad evil lady has the last name Luthor, well, she’s mildly concerned.

 

She should have come better prepared though. Before going and seeing Ollie, Sara figures she’ll stop by and see her wonderful, patient, caring sister who she misses with all her heart (there will be no talk about  _ that other timeline _ . None. Nope. Never happened.). They fixed it all. Even if a Luthor in Star City is the price. She didn’t know that Lena would not only be in Star City, but in her sister’s apartment. Wearing her sister's favorite sweatshirt. Looking very much the opposite of this big bad evil lady that Oliver had described so clearly. When Sara looks back on this moment later it's  _ obvious _ the lovesick disgusting look Lena gives her sister. But in the moment all Sara can see is a possible snake in the grass taking advantage of her too trusting, too kind, too big hearted big sister. When Laurel smiles at Lena so  _ brightly,  _ Sara almost forgets about the looming danger that Oliver brought her here for. So she does what she does best, leaves. 

 

Oliver makes some good points. The girl is a  _ Luthor. _ Everyone knows about what the eldest heir to the Luthor companies and fortune did in his persecution of the big blue boyscout. And it's not that Sara believes people are bad  _ necessarily _ but maybe being raised by the power hungry Lionel Luthor left a sinister impact on Lena. She is very powerful, wealthy, attractive, trying to get close to someone on Team Arrow. Ok so there are some  _ possible _ red flags. Though Sara isn’t sure how much truth there is to these theories. Naturally Sara doesn’t trust anyone who wants to date Laurel. Her sister is far too good for anyone in this shit hole city. Her sister, who all but moved heaven and earth to  _ bring her back from the dead. _ So yeah, no one is good enough. Could one ever be good enough for Dinah Laurel Lance? Sara will kick anyone’s ass who thinks they deserve Laurel’s attention so convincing her to get to know her sister’s girlfriend who might be evil isn’t exactly as difficult as it should be.  The Legends team mentions that this shouldn’t really be a pressing matter compared to adventuring and  _ saving time _ (ok sometimes breaking it too), but they all concede, they’ve missed their loved ones too. So she agrees to help Oliver  _ recon _ her sister’s girlfriend. 

 

Sara spends time observing Lena, but never really getting to know her. Never talking to her. Somehow any time Sara gets the chance to have a real conversation with Lena it’s always interrupted. It’s frustrating. But she takes to stalking the CEO instead.  Figures what people do when they aren’t being watched is more important than any conversation she could have with the woman. What she finds is boring. Like, really really boring. This woman has like almost no friends other than her assistant, Laurel, and a reporter. That’s it. She spends her time  _ making L corp better for Star City. _ And doing sciency things that Stein and Jax would definitely understand better than Sara would. She also does a lot of nice things for Laurel. Sara thinks to herself more than once that if Lena is an evil mastermind that listening to all the things her sister is nerdy about and actually paying attention to them is next level villainy. 

  
  


When Nyssa shows up because Ollie asked for help and  _ wow, she looks so good _ . She realizes that maybe Oliver is in fact off his rocker. Calling in (former) assassins as backup is a bit much for the situation. The situation that has yet to prove Lena has done anything wrong. Really, who is Sara to judge this woman anyways? She dated the heir to an assassin’s league for years, Laurel dating a Luthor who has yet to prove herself guilty of anything other than being completely in love with her sister, might be a too hasty. After everything she’s put Laurel through maybe she should trust her sister more. 

 

It’s when having dinner with her big sister and Lena (who comments on how nice it is to meet the  _ timeless _ Sara Lance) along with her date for the night Nyssa (It's definitely not awkward. At all. It’s only for this stupid mission. Except Nyssa gained some more muscles and is wearing  _ those _ pants -  _ fuck _ ) that she learns she’s going to murder Oliver. Absolutely positively murder that  _ fucker _ . Nyssa says it so casually. ‘ _ Yes, Husband and father conspired to have me married against my will so that he would run the league’ _ It makes the way she greeted Ollie earlier make so much more sense. Sara is gonna kill him.

  
  


Of course more pieces of the puzzle start falling into place when the vigilantes get called away from dinner on business. They have a rough time down at the docks against some of Damien Dhark’s goons and Laurel ends up with a busted lip and dislocated shoulder while Nyssa sports an impressive bump on her head and Sara forgetting to murder Oliver temporarily. They make it back to Laurel’s apartment for a nightcap and Sara is surprised to find Lena there still, with basically an entire pharmacy on the kitchen table. She has gauze, wraps, bandages, syringes, medicine, stuff for stitches, and basically the whole shebang. Sara doesn’t understand for a moment. Not until Lena breaks the silence.

 

_ ‘I heard the Green Arrow got his ass handed to him by some gang tonight, good thing he has The Black Canary on his side. She really showed them. She is some kind of hero. _ ’

 

Sara beams, the puzzle of it all fitting together nicely. Her sister is blushing  _ hard _ and she feels like she might in fact actually be in one of the alternate universes the STAR LABS team goes on about. What really gets Sara though is when Lena, still unfazed, hands Laurel her favorite Ice Cream (mint choc. chip thank you very much) from the freezer, kisses her on the forehead and says  _ ‘But maybe next time you could  _ **_duck_ ** _ their punches, Pretty Bird.’  _

 

It leads to Laurel telling Sara and Nyssa about how she and Lena met and became friends and of the night when Lena whispered ‘ _ Laurel Lance, you are my hero’ _ complete with a completely stupid lovesick grin from Lena that Sara knows  _ even more now  _ she’s gonna murder the stupid freaking Green Arrow. How could Oliver be so  _ stupid _ about all of this? So wrong about everything. God knows he never treated Laurel right but she didn’t think that Ollie would stoop to treating Laurel this low. To accuse her sister’s girlfriend of being Evil for  _ no reason _ . Sara loses it, and if Nyssa has to stop her, knuckles bloodied and her white clothes stained, she doesn’t regret it. 

 

She doesn’t regret giving Ollie the lesson she should have given him long ago. 

 

It’s no surprise when the team is divided. Loyalty over logic sometimes. Dig is pissed at Oliver for running them on a wild goose chase. Felicity is siding with Oliver ( _ unsurprisingly _ ) and Thea doesn’t really want either of her siblings (even if one is more honorary than blood) pissed off at her at the moment. Of course that’s when Lance arrests Lena the next day at L Corp. Shit has officially hit the fan. Laurel is devastated, but has so much ( _ too much _ ) faith that Lena is innocent. Oliver is smug  _ (too smug). _ Nobody wants to talk to each other fully.

 

_ That  _ is when something that Sara hoped she’d never have to live through ever again happens. She won’t lose her sister again. They all know Lena is innocent and that it was Dhark but now her sister,  _ her hero _ , has an arrow deep in her stomach.

 

She’s ready to rip through time again. Fuck all the bullshit about keeping timelines and how dangerous it is. If Barry gets to fuck the timeline a lot with almost no consequences then  _ dammit _ Sara can save her sister again. Laurel might not have had to move actual heaven and earth to save Sara. But Sara certainly  _ would  _ to save Laurel _. _ In the middle of her fury, with Nyssa by her side glaring at anyone who suggests Laurel shouldn’t be saved,  the doctors manage to do something right and keep Laurel holding on far longer than the last time this happened. She might not have to rip the timeline apart yet, but she is definitely ready if she needs to. 

 

Sara decides that maybe she should have faith in Laurel after all. Or at least have faith in Laurel’s faith. So she and Nyssa help her dad scrounge for even more evidence in Dhark’s lair that will help her Dad prove Lena to be innocent. Dhark may be a criminal mastermind but she  _ will _ get him this time. When her Dad has enough evidence to take it to the higher ups, she breathes a small sigh of relief. Lena is free.

 

Of course with Lena at her side (along with Sara, Thea, Nyssa, and their Dad of course) Laurel makes her recovery. Slow as it may be. Frustrating as it may be for all of them, man, Laurel is a  _ crappy _ patient. The day comes that it’s time for her to leave again on another Waverider adventure as the Captain of her ragtag team. As sad as she may be to go, at least she can finally trust someone to hold Laurel’s heart and not break it. She can leave knowing that her sister is being well taken care of and for once, fully appreciated. That even she herself hasn’t been good enough for her sister in a while (don’t tell Laurel that though she  _ will  _ beat you up for it). She’s not sure she ever will. She was never sure anyone would be for that matter. 

 

Sara knows now that someone finally is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you liked it
> 
>  
> 
> also would just like to say no Supergirl characters will probably be featured because this is in Star City instead of National City. Also I hated season 2 and it made me dislike so many of the characters because they were so off the mark. But maybe that's just me. 
> 
> Also won't obviously be including anything in s5 of Arrow because I didn't watch it. 
> 
> I will say I have most chapters planned and/or finished except I'm going to be doing chapters at the end that are of Lena and Laurel's pov each. So they are getting their own chapters and they'll be more detailed than these because there's more there.


	5. Nyssa

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which it’s not stalking because Laurel has horrible taste....until she doesn’t.

Nyssa misses her beloved. Even if Sara came back to life and told her about her time travelling mission, Nyssa still craves her beloved’s presence. It’s why she finds herself back in Star City so often once she’s disbanded the League. She misses the place that called to Sara so much. She likes the feeling of closeness it brings her, even if it isn’t her home, it will always be Sara’s. It’s why, when she comes to visit to feel closer to her beloved (and because there’s not much for her to do now that the purpose she was raised for is gone) she visits (it’s certainly not stalking) the eldest Lance sister each time.

 

It is on one of these visits to Star City that Nyssa first becomes concerned. In all her time she’s known Laurel Lance the only time she has ever seen a true smile has been when talking about Sara. Yet Sara is gone, into time itself, Nyssa knows this, so why is Laurel smiling so much. And a genuine one at that. She finds the answer when a (quite beautiful) dark haired woman walks out of the coffee shop and hands Laurel a coffee. The smile grows. And with it the concern in Nyssa grows as well.

 

While Nyssa knows without a doubt that the eldest Lance sister deserves happiness she has grown to be weary of Laurel’s _taste_ in partners. She has notoriously low standards. Anyone who was willing to be with her _husband_ must (including her little bird). Nyssa _obviously_ must check out the striking brunette’s history and make sure that Laurel isn’t making another disastrous romantic mistake.

 

In her free time she _observes_ (not stalks) Lena Luthor, Laurel’s apparent new paramour. ( _Even if Laurel insists they are not involved in anything other than on a platonic level)._ She even enlists the help of her beloved’s little street child Sin, who does a wondrous job getting info on the Luthor woman as an intern at L Corp. While it’s not a position close to the CEO, hearing what one’s employees think of you says a great deal about the kind of person she might be. What Nyssa ( _mostly Sin)_ finds out is that Ms. Luthor is willing to make quite a deal of time in her busy schedule to fit in little get togethers with Laurel and that she treats her employees with an overwhelming amount of kindness and consideration. It warms her heart at least a little bit (only a little). At least she isn’t as thoughtless and uncaring as _previous_ partners.

 

She has other things to do and other places to go but when she returns to the city apparently their relationship has progressed. Laurel and Lena are dating. She finds she’s pleasantly surprised to still see the flushed cheeks and brilliant smile on her dear friends face. Too often she felt that it was constantly wrinkled or frowned with concern or sadness or loneliness. Now she is as bright as the sun. Her beloved will be pleased. The Lance sisters are ferociously protective after all.

 

When Nyssa returns to the city yet again she finds her beloved is there as well. Along with the information that her beloved is involved in one of _husband’s_ schemes. He is suspicious of Ms. Luthor because she is a _Luthor._ Oliver has apparently become convinced that Lena is up to something and after Team Arrow. Nyssa thinks the whole plot ridiculous and tries to appeal to Sara’s sensibilities, but her beloved’s concern for her sister knows no bounds and she wants to make sure Lena is worthy of Laurel’s heart. It’s noble. It’s also quite stupid.

 

However she plays along with the stupidity (at least she’s getting to spend time with Sara). She isn’t an official operative for this operation ( _husband_ has never particularly trusted her), but she takes part with Sara whenever she asks. All that happens is she finds out everything she has already known to be true. She didn’t spend months tailing the CEO of L corp for nothing after all.

 

Being reunited with Sara is always a blessing for Nyssa. They speak on new terms, as for the first time they are both free of the darkness of the League of Assassins. They learn new things and find a new love blossoming between them. Nyssa couldn’t be more pleased to find that perhaps she still has a place in her beloved’s life. This newness between the two of them is distracting and makes Nyssa feel complete, it’s been too long since she felt so _right._

 

The feeling doesn’t last long. Being distracted with having her love really and truly back to her caused her to be unfocused. Lena Luthor is now in jail. For a crime Nyssa is most certain she did not commit. She and Sara do their best to help Laurel of course. When one of them is with Laurel the other is with Captain Lance learning about what he’s uncovered. It goes that way until Captain Lance lets it slip that there is a bigger threat on the horizon. Damien Dhark, an old foe of her father’s at that, has been turning Star City completely into his playground. Is also the one most likely framing Ms. Luthor.

 

Damien Dhark is a bigger challenge than she thought. When her father spoke of the traitor before, she imagined he would be an easier opponent, but he is quite capable and very adept with his magical skill. Nyssa isn’t sure they are equipped to take him down. They have the information to, but not quickly enough.

 

The fight to take him out ( _if only they would kill him, then him coming back wouldn’t be a problem)_ is long and hard. Everyone will bear some kind of scar from this battle. Though Laurel has taken the worst of it for them. With an arrow protruding from her stomach the Black Canary is carried into a hospital with her team following closely, all of them worried for their friend’s life. Sara has a look in her eyes that perhaps she knows more than the rest of them do and she looks like she’s ready to rip time apart should the doctors be unable to save Laurel.

 

She tries to focus on helping her beloved deal with the pain and in doing so they decide to help Captain Lance prove Lena to be innocent once more by gathering every bit of evidence possible. Laurel needs her at her side more than Sara and Nyssa need sleep after all. When they gather all the evidence there is the judge is quick to acquit Lena (this is Star City, their justice system is severely lacking the _proper_ channels). So it is Sara and Nyssa who accompany Lena from jail to the hospital, filling her in along the way.

 

If Nyssa was ever unsure of Ms. Luthor’s affections, she certainly isn’t now. The look of devastation on Lena’s face is one she knows would likely be on hers were Sara the one lying in the hospital bed. And so she knows now without a doubt in her heart that Lena Luthor is not someone to fret over, she has no need to be protective of the oldest Lance where Lena is concerned.

 

Nyssa and Sara see Laurel through the healing process, with everyone else on the team as well (sans Oliver of course). Providing a steady and loving support for their dear Black Canary. Nyssa assumes once her sister is fully healed that Sara will return to her team and go galavanting back through the timeline again. She is shocked however when her beloved invites her to _join_ them. Without the League, without her sister Talia, without needing to be around to protect Laurel in Sara’s absence, without any responsibilities to attend to for once in her life, Nyssa agrees. She can finally follow her heart.

 

It is Lena and Laurel who see them off in a large abandoned parking lot where the waverider is parked. She is probably more pleased than she ought to be to give them big hugs goodbye and that she promises to keep Sara out of _too much_ trouble. Nyssa absolutely does not glance back at them one last time (she does, she sees Lena wrap Laurel up in a big hug as the lawyer buries her face in Lena’s shoulder to hide her tears).

 

She is glad to know that Laurel has good taste just this once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd really love to thank everyone who commented on the last chapter! I had given up on this story until I read those and it made me want to pick it up again because I love these two so much!
> 
> I don't know when the next update will be but I will try very hard to make it soon! And I do promise we will eventually get into Lena and Laurel's own points of view as well. Only a few other people to go first! 
> 
> Also if you want any and all kinds of Laurel Lance (and Lena x Laurel) feels come hit me up on tumblr @ queen-benanti 
> 
> Not beta'd so all mistakes are mine, sorry!


	6. Thea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which finally someone gets it

  
  


 

It starts for Thea on patrol. She gets paired up with Laurel, her favorite patrol partner, so it’s a good night. Things are for kind of quiet in the darling shit hole that is Star City. So they have time to talk. Or, well, Laurel has time to talk. Normally the oldest Lance sister is all ears to hear about whatever drama Thea is going through with the guys in her life and gives her advice and makes her feel heard and loved. But that night Laurel would not shut up. She was ranting and raving about  _ the most beautiful woman she’d ever seen _ (which is saying something considering how good looking most of the population of Star City is, even if it is a dump). 

 

Thea has never seen someone get so excited about having coffee spilled on them before. 

 

Coffee girl is now a permanent topic in the Lance/Queen sisterly dynamic duo. With Thea living with Laurel she gets to hear about hot coffee girl a  _ lot _ . It’s cute. It’s mostly nice to see Laurel smiling and very nice to not hear about  _ justice _ literally 24/7. Apparently they’ve  _ hung out _ . Which Laurel swears is totally innocent, like that’s going to stop Thea from a good old fashioned teasing. 

 

It’s what sisters do after all. And that is what they are, Thea could write a dissertation on chosen family versus biological family, and Laurel Lance is certainly _chosen_ _ family. _ She’s only been the one constant in her life since Oliver was dating her forever ago, back when the world wasn’t so bleak and dark. Before things were so  _ fucked up. _ Before everyone started  _ dying. _ When Oliver, her best friend, was dead the only one there to comfort her that could understand was Laurel (and her mom but that’s a whole other topic). 

 

So as an Honorary Lance Sister™, it’s Thea’s duty to tease Laurel mercilessly about the whole coffee girl situation. Which she does flawlessly.

 

Thea learns the secret identity of hot coffee girl by accident though, when flowers arrive at Laurel’s apartment, Thea just so happens to be there to sign for them. Thea also just so happens to sneak a peek at the little note that says  _ ‘coffee isn’t enough time to spend marveling in your company, how about dinner?- Lena’. _ Which wow, that is honestly _ smooth as fuck _ . Thea didn’t know Coffee girl had it in her. 

 

It doesn’t take being the world’s best hacker or a high tech scientist or even a top detective to know that the note is from  _ Lena freaking Luthor _ . Growing up as a Queen meant that you saw plenty of very fancy very expensive flower bouquets in your life. This one is most certainly both of those things. Thea would be impressed if the gesture actually required some thought, but it doesn’t.  Laurel Lance deserves more than just flowers to be wooed, it’s  _ cliche _ and these roses aren’t even Laurel’s  _ favorite flower. _

 

When an hour later another delivery happens and it’s cupcakes from Laurel’s favorite bakery she approves a little bit more. Two more packages are delivered and OK Thea is actually impressed now. She’s ordered one box of top notch coffee from that one place in  _ Metropolis _ that literally everyone raves about and the other box is something from a ufc/boxing website. Thea is willing to admit that maybe she was too quick to judge, Coffee Girl apparently knows her shit.

,

Thea doesn’t get to meet the elusive Luthor right away, but it’s mostly because she’s been spending more time with Alex or Sin so she’s at the apartment less and less. Sin’s sweet apartment that Laurel helped her get near the college are comfy and she has really missed having a friend outside of all the vigilante family drama. She only gets to hear about Lena and Laurel’s budding relationship anytime that she and the Black Canary are out on patrol together. She had forgotten how fun this side of Laurel is. The giddy love struck teenager that she remembers meeting in her childhood is hidden there under all the black leather. According to Laurel, she and Lena aren’t  _ dating _ just  _ yet _ , but Thea knows it’s only a matter of time.

 

It’s apparently on one of their (totally not dates) dates that  _ it _ happens. Thea really isn’t sure what  _ it  _ is at first. Laurel is just kind of out of it when she gets to the Arrowcave and is oddly quiet throughout their strangely crime free patrol. Thea is starting to get worried. She thinks maybe this Luthor hurt her sister and is 100% ready to go kick some ass. She’s about to question Laurel about it when  _ of course _ action finally happens. They fight and take down a gang of drug dealers, who are trying to make a name for themselves, with relative ease. Though not without a few bruises. But a (thea swears is actually a giant or 7 small people in a trench coat) huge guy manages to catch her by surprise and she’s sent flying off the building and into a nearby bush. 

 

The branches don’t really do much to cushion the fall if she’s honest, it almost makes it worse. Laurel takes him down though and is trudging down and over to Thea’s side in an instant, making sure she is okay. When she’s done being a mother hen Laurel starts to shift awkwardly from foot to foot as she stares off into the dark sky.

 

Thea is distracted and picking at a few leftover leaves in her hair that will be impossible to get out because of all the gel, which is why she’s not entirely sure she hears it when Laurel whispers, 

_ “She said I’m her hero.”  _ Thea double takes and panics because Oliver is going to flip if he finds out Lena  _ Luthor  _ knows their identities.

 

“ _ Not the Black Canary. Not the Green Arrow, not the Flash, not Superman…….Me.  _ **_Laurel._ ** _ ” _

 

_Oh_. Oh. Thea thinks she might actually start crying because wow. She knows that she has never heard anyone (herself included) say something like  _ that _ about Laurel. She can feel a giant lump in her throat because of what that means. What it means to her. What she knows it means to  _ Laurel. _

 

She doesn’t know what to do because she’s so choked up so she just forces out a  _ “Well what did you say to her after that?” _ And she doesn’t know why she’s whispering but at this point it feels appropriate since it’s the dead of night, they’re clad entirely in leather, and she’s murdered a bush. 

 

“ _ I told her I’m the Black Canary.” _

 

Well... Oliver _ is  _ going to flip. But Thea can’t really be bothered to care in this moment. Because if Laurel doesn’t start crying right now  _ she’s  _ going to. Her approval of Lena just went through the roof and they just start laughing uncontrollably. The good kind of laugh where you’re so overcome with happy emotions that you can’t do anything else and she hugs Laurel so tightly because she knows. She knows the hell Laurel has been through and she’s never in her life been so happy for the person who is in all but blood her sister. 

 

So Thea knows. Thea  _ knows _ knows. More than the rest of the team for sure. She knows about the cute little things Lena and Laurel do and how much they completely  _ love _ each other, even if it hasn’t been said yet. She hears Laurel call Lena  _ baby _ way too many times, which actually she’d like to forget about, but it’s way better than hearing  _ Ollie _ say it to Felicity. Thea gets to see Lena try (fail) to take care of Laurel the  _ one time _ Laurel has gotten sick in literal years. It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad seeing how out of touch Lena is with grocery shopping ( _ it’s a banana what does it cost $10).  _ Billionaires. Not that she can judge, she grew up a Queen after all. 

 

She’s starting to feel like everything might not be so bad when Damien Dhark happens. And when Damien Dhark starts to happen Oliver finds out about Laurel’s friend Lena  _ Luthor _ . The man is paranoid. She knows this. But she also doesn’t know what to do about it. Between the bloodlust and the running for mayor and felicity being almost dead and everything that happens she just can’t choose between her siblings right now. And she knows, she  _ knows, _ that Laurel is right but they have bigger fish to fry right now than a civil war or pissing contest.

 

She wishes her brother wasn't so fucking controlling and possessive and  _ hypocritical _ but now is not the time. Which is exactly the time when Lena is arrested and everything is fucked. She went from someone  _ finally  _ treating Laurel great and everything being fine and dating Alex and maybe, just  _ maybe _ being happy, to  _ this.  _ Right now she hates Star City more than possibly ever. 

 

It’s cursed. They’re cursed. All of them. No one gets to be too happy for long here. It’s not allowed. Especially if you have the last name Lance. Or Queen. 

 

When they go after Dhark _(Laurel was right about Lena being innocent after all)_ and he puts an arrow through Laurel’s stomach, Thea hates Nyssa just a little bit for destroying the Lazarus pit. Because, as much as the blood lust sucks she would do anything to save Laurel right now. Laurel, who looks like she’s on the brink of death and Thea  _ cannot _ lose another person she loves. She can’t. 

 

The good(surprising) news is she doesn’t have to.The bad news is she’s never been so painfully aware of how  _ isolated _ they all are from the real world. The world that isn’t full of vigilantes and bad guys. Thea needs a break. They all do. 

 

It’s a small miracle that somehow in this crappy city something good happens and Lena is cleared because of the overwhelming evidence Captain Lance has. Thea’s never been so happy for someone to be declared innocent before, including that time Oliver was on trial for being the Hood. 

 

When she knows Laurel is going to be ok and that Oliver feels some kind of remorse for being an _ idiot _ she ends up taking a small break because fuck the city. They just took down Dhark for good and Laurel has to rest to get better. So she figures it won’t hurt if she doesn’t suit up for a few weeks to help the lawyer do so. Not that she needs to help. Lena has it taken care of. And for once, Thea  _ finally _ knows that someone gets it. She has someone else in her corner to root and cheer and love the oldest Lance sibling as much as she does. 

 

It’s about time the universe gave a Lance something good after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Hope all is going well. I got some free time and inspiration so I figured I'd write another chapter.
> 
> Unbeta'd so all mistakes are mine, sorry about that!
> 
> I personally hate that Thea and Laurel's friendship was downplayed so often on the show so I kinda wanted to fix that especially with what is happening on the show right now. also I know I know I stole the 'you are my hero thing from supercorp'. Sorryaboutit
> 
> Laurel deserves nice things and to kiss ladies. Ok? ok.  
> So I'm thinking Oliver is up next (then we'll finally get to see the girls point of view YAY!) and if you like Oliver....I...you won't like the next chapter is all I'll say. 
> 
> Interaction makes me happy and I love seeing comments so give me your thoughts!  
> And if you want to talk about how much you love laurel or any of the ladies from all dctv shows or comics hit me up at queen-benanti on tumblr!


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